Refrigerator construction



July 4 119330 F. M. SUTTON REFRIGERATOR CONSTRUCTION 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June '10, 1930 QJMW INVENTOR BY I ATTORNEYS July 4, 1933. M SUTTOZN 1,916,852

REFRIGERATOR CONSTRUCTION Filed June 10, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 l NVENTOR F. M. SUTTON l,9l6,852.

REFRIGERATOR CONSTRUCTION 1.

Filed June 10, 1950 s Sheets-Sheet 5 l NVENTOR ATTORNEW H l/Wi July 4, 1933.

l HHHHIH Patented July 4, 1933 PATENT OFFICE FRANCIS MARVIN SUTTON, OF NEW-YORK, N. Y.

REFRIGERATOR CON STRUCTION Application filed June'lO,

The invention relates to improvements in refrigerator construction, and more particularly to a novel construction and arrangement of removable trays for holdin provi- 5 sions in a refrigerator and a remova le support therefor.

' In the usual type of refrigerator employed for home use, the trays used for holding the provisions to be refrigerated are either constructed in the form of flat shelves made of wire or some other suitable material, or aremade in shallow basket-like form of the same materials, and are arranged in the refrigerator in such manner that different classes and sizes of provisions may be placed thereon.

Ordinarily, these trays or shelves are constructed in such manner that they are-permanently secured to the interior of the refrigerating compartment, or are not removable except by lifting the same out of the refrigerator after removing all of the rovisions that may be stored on the same. lso when these trays or shelves are positioned in the refrigerating compartment in the usual manner, it is necessary,'in order to remove any desired article placed thereon, to reach into the refrigerator and take the same out of the compartment. If other articles happen to be in the way of the desired article it is necessary to first either remove these articles or set them out of the refrigerator. In the usual construction of trays for refrigerators of the type used in homes, there is also no provision vented frombeing accidentally upset when removing the same or when removing other art cles from the refrigerating compartment.

In addition to the above objectional fea- 43 tures of the tray equipment for these refrigcrators, it has been found that the usual arrangement of the trays in the refrigerating compartment is ordinarily such that there is a large amount of space which could be utilized for storing articles which is wasted.

It is the special object of my present invention to overcome the above mentioned objections by providing a construction and arrangement of trays and a support therefor which will be adaptable for use in any standthe refrigerator when said support is mountmade whereby bottles or like articles are pre 1930. Serial No. 460,118.

ard ty e of refrigerator in place of the usual type o f trays which are now used therein.

A further object of the invention is to provide a removable support for the trays embodying my invention which may be readily to assembled and secured as a unit to the interior of the refrigerating compartment of a refri erator.

further object of the invention is to provide a novel construction of a removable support for said trays which is so designed that the trays are slidably removable from the interior of the refrigerating compartment of ed therein.

A further object of the invention is to provide an arrangement of the trays on said support whereby a maximum of the interior space of the refrigerating compartment will be utilized for the storing of provisions.

A further object of the invention is to pro-- vide a novel construction of the tra s so that individual articles to be stored in t e refrigerating compartment ma be separated and maintained in the re rigerator without danger of being'upset or knocked over when it is desired to remove other articles from the compartment.

Other objects and purposes than those specifically enumerated will be apparent as so understanding is had of the construction i1- lustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of the removable support for the trays and which is made in accordance with my invention. The support is shown with the trays removed and a part of the figure is broken away to more clearly show a portion of the construction of said support.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the construction of one type of tray which may be utilized in my improved refrigerator construction.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the construction of another type of tray which may be utilized in said refrigerator construction.

Fig. 4 is a front elevational view of the support showing the trays illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3 in place therein.

Fig. 5 is a broken side elevatlonal view of the lower basket illustrated in. Fig. 4.

Fig.6 is a perspective view of a removable divider which is adaptable for use 1n connection with the tray shown in Fig.

Fig. 7 is a partial broken view in pers ective of one corner of the tray shown in 1g. 2 and showing the relation of its respectlye parts withsaid support when partially in place. V

Fig. 8 is a sectional view of Fig. 7 taken on the line 8-8 of Fig. 7 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig.9 is a partial view in perspective showing a modified construction of the tray and su port at the point where the tray is sl1dabl y supported in said support.

Fig. 10 is a plan view of a tra and the support as constructed in the modified form shown in Fig. 9.

Like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

l The tray support illustrated in Fig. 1 1s provided with the upright elements 1, 2, 3 and4 ofangle-iron construction. The lower extremities of the upright elements 1 and 2 are spaced apart by the bar 5 which is also of angle iron construction. The lower extrem ties of the upright elements 3 and 4 are s1m1- larly spaced apart by the angle iron 6. These s acer bars 5 and 6 are secured to said upright elements in any desirable manner, such for instance as by screws or bolts. The upper extremities of the upright elements 1 and 2 are spaced apart by the angle iron bar 7, whereas the upper extremities of the upright elements 3 and 4 are likewisespaced apart by the angle iron bars 8.' The spacer bars 7 and 8 are also secured to said upright elements in any desired manner, such as by 1 screws or bolts.

- The upright elements 1 and 2 are separated from the upright elements 3 and 4 by the spacer bars 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14, which are adapted to be secured in a suitable manner to said upright elements. The bars 9 and 10 are secured to the upright elements 1, 2, 3

and 4 in such manner that they are overlap ed by the angle iron bars 7 and 8, as clearly shown in Fig. 1.

The spacer bars 11 and 12 and 13 and 14 formthe supports for slidably supporting the trays as will be more fully described hereinafter. If desired more spacer bars forming supports for further trays may be uti- The drawings illustrate two types of tray construction and two types of construction of the spacer bars for slidably supporting the trays. The support shown in Fig. 1 shows the preferred form of construction and the tray shown in Fig. 2 shows the preferred form of tray construction adaptable to be used with the support illustrated in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 shows a form of modified tray construction adaptable for use in .a modified support construction which is illustrated in Fig. 9.

The tray support illustrated in Fi 1 and which has been above described, may he readily assembled and by utilizing upright elements and spacer bars of a desired length the said support can be made adaptable for use in the refrigerating compartment of any sized refrigerator. The said support ma be also removably securedto the interior of the refrigerating compartment by anysuitable means, such as screw bolts 23, 24, 25 and 26 shown in .Fig. 4.

Trays adaptable for being removably maintained in the support shown in Fig. 1 are constructed in the manner clearly illustrated in Fig. 2. The tray shown is provided with the upright elements 27, 28, 29 and 30 which may be of angle iron construction. The upright elements 27 and 28 are spaced apart.

by the lower angle iron 31 and the upper bar 32. The upright elements 29 and 30 are spaced apart by similar angle bars 33 and 34. The rearwardly upright members 29 and 30 may be made 'of a greater height than the forward members 27 and 28 so as to prevent any provisions which may be stored on the tray from falling off when the tray is removed from the refrigerating chamber.

The lower extremities of the upright members 27, 28, 29 and 30 are spaced apart by the side angle bars 35 and 36. The upper end of the upright members 27 and 28 are spaced apart from the rear upright members 29 and 30 by means of the angle bars 37 and 38. The angle bars 37 and 38 are of less width than the spacer bars 11, 12, 13 and 14 of said support but adapted to slide thereon. The bottom ends and sides of the tray are covered in any suitable manner with a wire mesh or other suitable material, as clearly shown'in the drawings, and it is of course understood that the width of the tray is such that the side angle irons 37 and 38 will pass through the openings 15, 16, 17 and 18 in the upright elements 1 and 2, and the depth of the tray in such that it will be completely supported on'the spacer bars 11 and 12, or 13 and 14, when it is slid into position in the support.

Mounted on the sides of the tray are upright members 39 and 40. Secured to the upright members 39 and 40 and also to the upright members 29 and 30 are short angle iron pieces 41and 42. These short angle apart from the under surfaces of the angle iron pieces are positioned so that the upper surface thereof lies parallel with but spaced irons 37 and 38. The tray is also provided with a suitable handle 43.

The rear ends of spacer bars 11, 12, 13 and 14 are provided with cut out portions 21 and 22. Said cut out portions are of a width slightly greater than the width of the angle irons 37, 38, 41 and 42 and of a length slightly greater than the length of the short angle iron pieces 41 and 42.

Asabove stated, the basket tray constructed as illustrated in Fig. 3 is adapted to be slid through the openings 15 and 16, or 17 and 18, in the support and when the tray is inserted through either pair of these openings and pushed to the rear of the support the lower surface of the short angle irons 41 and 42 slide along the upper surface of the spacer bars 11 and 12, or 13 and 14, until the cut out portions 19 and 20, or 21 and 22, are reached and then the short angle irons 41 and 42 drop down below the surface of the spacerbars and the tray is supported on said spacer bars by means of the angle bars 37 and 38. The position of the tray with'respect to the support at the point where the short angle irons are about to drop below the surface of the spacer bars is clearly shown in Fig. 7.

After the said tray has thus been positioned in the support it can readily be pulled forward by means of the handle 43, the angle bars 37 and 38 sliding onthe upper surface of angle bars 11 and 12, or 13 and 14, and the upper surface of short angle bars 41 and 42 slidingvon the under surface of angle bars 11 and 12, or 13 and 14. The forward movement of the tray when it is pulled forward is arrested before the tray can be completely pulled from the support by means of the forward ends of the short angle irons 41 and 42 abutting against the upright elements 1 and 2.

If it is desired to completely remove the tray from the support, the tray is pushed to the rear of the support so that the cut out portions 19 and 20, or 21and 22, coincide with the position of the short angle irons 41 and 42 and then the forward end of the tray, is tilted slightly downwardly until the short angle irons 41 and 42 are above the surface of the spacer bars and then the tray is pulled forward allowing the under surface of angle bars 41 and 42 to slide on the upper Surface of the spacer bars.

In the modified structure of support and 9 tray shown in'Figs. 9 and 10 the side angle bars 44 and 45 of the tray are formed with the cut out portions 46 and 47 andat the ends 7 there is provided the upstanding lugs 48 and 49. The upright members 1 and 2 of the support at the cut out portions 15, 16, 17 and 18 have secured thereto, in addition to the spacer bars 11, 12, 13 and 14, the short angle irons 50 and 50 which are so positioned that their under faces lie above and parallel with the spacer bars.

When this construction of the tray and support is utilized the tray is inserted into the support so that the side angle irons will slidably ride along the surfaces of the upper short angle irons 50 and 50 until the cut out portions 46 and 47 coincide with the short angle irons. When this point is reached the side angle irons 44 and 45 will drop downwardly until they are supported on the spacer bars 11 and 12, or' 13 and 14. When the tray is pulled forward its forward movement is arrested bv means of the lugs 48 and 49 which will strike against the ends 51 and 52 of the short angle irons 50 and 50. If it is desired to entirely remove the tray from the support, this may readily be accomplished when the tray is completely within the support by simply raising the front portion of the tray until the under surfaces of the side spacer bars 44 and 45 are above the upper surfaces of the short angle bars 50 and 50* and then pulling the tray forward.

In Fig. 3 there is illustrated a type of tray which is adaptable for use in my improved refrigerator apparatus and which is constructed in a particular manner so as to carry out the objects of my invention. This type of tray may be formed with the side spacer bar construction as above described in reference to the tray shown in Fig. 2, although it is illustrated as being made with the side bar construction described as the modified form shown in Figs. 9 and 10. v

The tray shown in Fig. 3 is generally adapted to be used as an upper tray fitting into the support in the upper part thereof, as shown in Fig. 4, and is supported by the upper spacer bars 11 and 12. The tray is formed with a box-like frame having wire mesh sides. -One-half of the frame of the tray is of greater depth than the other half and is divided into compartments formed by spaced apart wire mesh dividing members. The other half of said tray is divided into compartments by similar dividing members. The dividing members may be removable as a unit (see Fign6). The compartments of the greater depth are designed to accommoticles of medium height and which are of the type that might accidentally upset.

Referring to Fig. 4, it will be seen that when a tray constructed in accordance with the design illustrated in Fig. 3 is in place with reference to the support it is possible to utilize a flat tray of the design shown in Fig. 2 positioned in the support so that it is comparativcly close to the upper tray and because of the reduced depth of one-half of the upper tray there is provided a space between the trays on one side where large (provisions, such as cuts of meat may be store whereas there is no lost space between the upper and lower trays on the other side. By this manner of constructing and arranging the trays in the support all of the vailable space is utilized to the best advantage and it is possible to provide for the storing of a maximum quantity of provisions.

It will be seen from the above description that there is provided a refrigerating construction which is readily adaptable'for use in the standard types of refrigerator compartments and said construction can be readily removed from the compartment as a whole unit for cleaning purposes or the trays thereof can be individually removed either with the provisions stored thereon or empty. The trays are also constructed in such manner that although they are capable of bein slidably withdrawn partially from the re rigerator compartment, they are prevented from being accidentally withdrawn completely from the refrigerator compartment when they are being used in the ordinary manner.

It will also be seen that the provisions stored upon the trays are made readily accessible by reason of the fact that the tray may be slidably withdrawn from the refrigerator compartment and individual articles which are liable to be tipped over are protccted from such a mishap by reason of the compartments provided in the tray construc-' tion.

What I claim is:

1. Ina refrigerator construction, a support for removable trays comprising front and rear frames each consisting of vertical members spaced from each other by horizontal members, and a plurality of horizontal members connecting said frames, a plurality of removable trays adapted to be supported on said horizontal frame connecting members of said support, said trays comprising a frame having Wire mesh covered sides and bottom, out out portions in the vertical members of the front frame of said support, horizontal angle iron bars secured to each side of said tray and adapted to be slidably received through the cut out portions of said vertical members of the front frame of said support and to be supported by the horizontal-frame connecting members thereof, a short horizontal angle iron bar secured to each side of said tray positioned parallel with but spaced apart from said first mentioned side angle bars on the sides of said tray, cut out portions in the horizontal frame connecting members of said support, said out out port-ions being of a greater length than the length of said short horizontal angle iron bars secured to.

the sides of said tray.

.2. In a refrigerator construction, a support comprising front and rear frames each consisting of vertical members spaced from each other by horizontal members, and a plurality of horizontal members connecting said frames, a plurality of removable trays adapted to be positioned in said support and supported on said horizontal frame connectin members, said trays having front, rear an side members and bottom covered with wire mesh, a horizontal angle bar secured to each side of said tray, cut out portions in the vertical members of the front frame of said suport adapted to receive the horizpntal angle ars of said trays, cut out portions in the hor-' izontal frame connecting members of said support, means on said trays to abut against said horizontal frame connecting members of said support to prevent the accidental withdrawal of said trays.

3. In a refrigerator construction, a support comprising front and rear frames each consisting of vertical members spaced from each other by horizontal members, and a plurality of horizontal members connecting said frames, a pluralit of removable trays adapted to be positione in said support, said trays bein formed with wire mesh front and rear mem ers, wire mesh side members and a wire,

mesh bottom, a. horizontal angle iron bar secured to each side member ofsaid tray, said angle bars being adapted to be slidably supported on the horizontal connecting memers of said support, a short horizontal angle iron bar secured to each side member at the rear portion of said side member and positioned parallel to but spaced apart from said first mentioned horizontal angle bars of said tray, cut out portions in said vertical members of the front frame of said support adapted to receive the horizontal angle bars of said tray, said out out portions being ad jacent the joining point of the horizontal connectin members with the vertical members of sai support, cut out portions at the rear ends of the horizontal connecting members of said support, said out out portions being of a length greater than the length of the I short angle iron bars of said trays.

4. In a refrigerator construction, a supporting frame for removable trays comprised of pairs of front and rear vertical bars spaced apart by horizontal front and rear bars at the bottom and top thereof and by a plurality of horizontal side bars connecting with said vertical bars at points at the tops and intermediate the ends thereof, cut out portions in the front vertical bars adjacent the j oinder points of the side bars with said vertical bars, a removable tray having wire mesh sides and bottom, and adapted to be supported on a lower pair of said horizontal side spacing bars, a second removable tray having wiremeshed sides and bottom and adapthorizontal side spacing bars, and formed so that a portion of the tray is of greater depth than the remainder thereof and having removable Wire mesh partitions therein, horizontel angle iron bars secured to the sides of said trays and adapted to be slidebly supported on the horizontal side spacing bars of said frame, short horizontal angle iron hers secured to the sides of said trays at the rear portion of said sides and positioned below and spaced opera; from the upper horizontal angle iron her, out out portions in the horizontal side spacing bars of said frame at the rear end of said bars, said em; out portions being of e, greater length end Width than the h hor'; horizontal nides of said trey so rinontel her to the plane or" the no length and widt gle hers secured to she to permit said shro A drop below the level 01 rec,

er surface of the horizontal side sneoin .s D

side spacing bars of seid heme when said try is pulled outwardly from said frame,

A testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand on this 6th day oi June A. i930.

FRANCIS SUT EUNH 

